I See You
by Emma Ro
Summary: Bella is famous. Jasper is not. Can it work between them? All-Human. One-shot.


I own nothing. Sad, I know.

Thank you to my always amazing prereader and friend, Frankielynn, and amazing beta (and friend) AJasperForMe.

* * *

><p><strong>I See You<strong>

Bella could hear the gaggle of paparazzo following closely behind her. She pulled her hat down on her head further, hiking the hood of her jacket up, hunkering down, hiding. She ran into a clothing store quickly, but could still hear them yelling for her outside the door.

"Isabella! Isabella!"

She walked up to the counter, looking for someone, anyone who worked there.

"Is there a back door here? I need to get away from these guys." Being L.A., the woman behind the counter was unfazed by the celebrity in her store.

"Yeah, give me a second, and I can lead you out." She called another worker over to watch the register before turning back to Bella. "Ok, follow me."

"Thank you so much." Bella followed the woman back behind the counter and through a door.

"It's not a problem. It actually happens more than you'd think." She led Bella through the stockroom, heading for the back of the building. Pointing to the door, she turned back to Bella.

"Just go out that door and turn right. It will lead you out of the alley, and you'll be on the side street."

"Thank you. I really appreciate it. What's your name?"

"My name's Rose. It's really no trouble at all, Ms. Swan."

"Well, thank you, Rose. I will remember that you guys are here and stop by when I have some more time. I saw some really cute things out there."

"Well thanks, my sister-in-law and I own the store. We design and make some of the clothes too."

"Well I'll come back soon. I promise." With a big smile, Bella snuck out the door and down the alley.

She got to the end and peeked around the corner, hoping to get out of the alley without notice. She could see a man, a lookout, standing on the corner waiting and watching for her, but he was looking away for the moment. Bella walked out of the alley, ducking low in her jacket. She turned her head quickly to look at the man waiting there. She looked just in time to see him turn towards her. She walked quickly, noticing the next store was a cafe. She jogged to the door, slipping inside and walking to the back of the store where the counter was.

She turned back to the window, checking to see if there was anyone following her. Thankful to see that no one was outside the window, she turned back to the counter just as a throat cleared behind her. Bella turned towards the sound and was struck silent. The man standing behind the counter was gorgeous. He was tall, well over six feet, with light brown wavy hair and beautiful green eyes. He was wearing a gray t-shirt and black pants with a small apron wrapped around his waist and a hand towel draped over his shoulder. Even all disheveled, he was still the hottest man she had ever seen.

A big smile spread across his face before he spoke, "Hi, I'm Jasper. What can I get for you?"

"Um…I, ah…" Bella cleared her throat quickly before trying again. "A cappuccino, please."

Jasper flashed a cheeky grin before turning towards the register. "Is there anything else I can get you? Sandwich? Soup? Scone?" He looked back at her, that panty-dropping smile present once again.

"Um, the coffee is fine for now. I may be around awhile. I'll let you know if I change my mind."

"Sure, grab a table or you can sit over here at the counter." Jasper said before turning away and getting her coffee.

Bella looked around the café. The only tables available were over by the window, which she wanted to avoid. She walked around to the side, choosing a stool next to the wall. Setting down her purse on the counter, she pulled out her phone.

"Here you go, Darlin'. So, what's your name? What brought you into my lovely little café?"

Bella looked up in disbelief. Could he really not know who she was?

"Um, my name is Isa…Bella. My name is Bella, and I just needed some coffee."

"But you said that you'd probably be sticking around for a while. Not that I mind; I don't mind having a gorgeous woman to talk to. I'm just curious as to why you'd want to hang out here all day, rather than being with your husband or boyfriend." Jasper smirked at his obvious question of her marital status.

Bella shook her head and smiled. "No boyfriend or husband to spend time with anyway. And I just was going shopping today but decided I needed to sit here and flirt with a handsome barista for the afternoon instead."

Jasper chuckled and shot her a smile before turning to the counter to help a customer.

~~ICU~~

Over the next few hours, Jasper would come over and check on her. They chatted about a little bit of everything while Jasper worked.

"Here," Jasper said, putting a plate in front of Bella. "You need to eat something."

Bella looked around the room, noticing it was well after lunch, and it had slowed down quite a bit. She looked up at Jasper before looking down at the turkey sandwich and hot soup sitting in front of her. "Oh, thank you. I didn't even realize how late it was. I'm probably boring you by now, huh?"

"Not at all; you have entertained me through my usually pretty boring day. I may have to keep you here every day."

Bella laughed, "Well, as fun as that sounds, I don't know if that would work out well…for either of us."

"You may be right; you'd distract me too much. I would never get any work done."

"So tell me, how did you come to own a café in LA?"

"Well, my aunt and uncle actually owned this café, and when they retired, they left it to me. They didn't have any kids, and my cousin, from my other aunt, actually owns the clothing store around the corner with her sister-in-law."

Bella choked on her sandwich for a minute before she was able to talk. "I was actually in there just before I came here."

"Really? Did you find anything you liked?"

"Um, I didn't really have time to look around, actually…eh." Bella luckily was able to deflect the question when another costumer came up to the counter, pulling Jasper away.

~~ICU~~

"So as much as I have loved you being here all day, may I ask why? I'm sure you have much better things to be doing than sitting here, chatting with me?"

"No, not really." Bella said, avoiding eye contact with Jasper. The dinner rush had come and gone, making her the only customer left.

"Well, I'm about to close down, let me get cleaned up and then I'll walk you to your car."

"Oh, um, I didn't drive. I'll call a taxi and get out of your way." Bella said, collecting her things and putting them back in her purse.

"Well, why don't you let me drive you? I'd like to talk to you some more; without interruptions this time."

"Uh, I don't know…I don't live in the area, exactly."

"It's not a problem. Please! Just let me get the money in the safe and lock up, and I will drive you anywhere you want to go."

Bella was fighting with herself. Though she barely knew Jasper, she couldn't deny the attraction, the spark there seemed to be between them. She really hadn't meant to spend the whole day at the coffee shop; she was only going to wait until the paparazzi left. But while she was talking to him, she couldn't help but be captivated by him. She watched him all day, learning his habits, the way he moved, the way he spoke to his customers, like he genuinely cared for them.

After watching him all day, she didn't think that he was just after her for her celebrity status, but she was still cautious. "Ok. If you're sure."

"I am. Just let me get this stuff taken care of."

"Don't rush. I'm in no hurry. Do whatever you need to do. Do you need any help?"

"No, just sit down and relax. I'll just be a few minutes."

When Jasper was done, he led Bella out of the front door, shutting and locking the door behind him. He placed his hand on her lower back, leading her around the building towards his car. Jasper opened the door for her, waiting until she was seated before closing it and running around to the driver's side. Bella told him which direction to go and after a few minutes of silence, he cleared his throat. "I have a confession to make."

Bella started fidgeting in her seat, "What's that?"

"Um, Bella, I'm not a stalker or anything, but I do know who you are. I know you're Isabella Swan, the famous movie actress."

"Oh, um…I…I"

"Hey, it's ok. I don't want anything. I just wanted you to know that I knew. I really like you. I'd like to take you out; somewhere that is not my café. If you want to, maybe?"

Bella was stunned. She expected many things from him, but not that. "You want to take me out?"

"If you would like that, yes, I would."

"You want to take your uncomplicated life and start dating a movie star? You want your face strewn all over magazines? Everything about your past out in the open, your private life to be written out for everyone to see?"

"Well, no, I don't want that. But if that's the way it has to be, to be with you, then I'm willing to try. I really like you. I want to see what we might be able to have. The question is, are you open to that?"

Bella looked out the window, deliberating for a moment. It took her a minute to realize they were already in her driveway and paused, wondering how he managed to get there without any more direction.

Bella turned to him and looked him in the eye, "How did you know where I lived?"

"I have another confession to make. The reason I know where you live is because my parents live in the house across the street. I actually live in the apartments down the road." Jasper looked down sheepishly, staring into his lap. "I've seen you out with your dogs when I've come over. I see how you are with them. I've always wanted to come over and talk to you, but I never really had the courage."

Bella took a deep breath, letting the information settle into her brain. She didn't know many of her neighbors just because she lacked the time to get to know them. She would have never guessed that she could have met this man so many times before and never taken the time to walk across the street and introduce herself.

Bella turned to face him, "Do you want to come in for a bit? Maybe have a drink or talk?"

"I would love to."

~~ICU~~

6 Months Later

"Jasper?"

"I'm in the kitchen," he called from down the hall.

The past six months had gone by in a whirlwind of romance. It only took a few days for the media to speculate about Isabella Swan's secret lover, and Jasper took it pretty well for someone who had never been in the spotlight before. Jasper and Bella had fallen in love quickly, but it was strong. Just as strong as couples who had been together for years. They were in the process of moving in together, around Bella's traveling, and doing press for her latest movie. Bella walked into the kitchen, seeing Jasper sitting at the breakfast bar in only his low-riding pajama pants. She walked up behind him, wrapping her arms around his body, pressing herself tightly to his back.

Looking over Jasper's shoulder, Bella could see her face staring back at her with a headline reading, "Star's relationship with coffee shop owner on the rocks?"

"You don't really believe that stuff, do you?" Bella mumbled, her lips pressed into his back.

"Hey," Jasper said, twisting around to face her. "Of course I don't believe it. I know what we have, and it's nothing that rag magazines or gossip shows are going to take away. I know who you are. I see you for who you are; you are not the celebrity that needs everything to be perfect and can't do anything for herself. You are the self-assured woman who doesn't take shit from anyone. You are the woman that I fell in love with."

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

Bella wrapped her arms tightly around Jasper's neck, burying her face against his skin. "Do you really see me like that?"

Jasper pulled away, placing his hands on the sides of her face. Staring deep into her eyes, he said forcefully, "Bella, I see you for who you are. I see you."

"Thank you. I see you, too."

* * *

><p>WHAT? No smut? I know. I know. It's all mushy and no smut. It didn't feel right in this fic.<p> 


End file.
